Way forward to the fatherhood

My mobile phone beeps its alarm in the silent lighted room while the darkness still looms outside. I rummage under the pillow to reach mobile phone while my eyes are still blurred due to brief sleep last night. I can hardly open my eyes in the light that is kept lighted to ensure watchfulness on my baby for his safety while sleeping aside. I put off the alarm and look outside the window.  Below my home is the highway. There, I see dazzling lights from a  few plying vehicles but I see not even a single jogger running, it is too early for them, of course. 

It is not easy to wake up this early. I usually wake up only at 7:30 am, at which, when I look out of the window, I use to see some of the joggers returning to their homes after running. But of late, I have got to shoulder extra responsibility having become a father of a child. My wife gave birth to a son on the 1^st September, 2014. Since then, I have been spending sleepless nights, and, at the most, I get 4 hours to sleep. Worries intensify when the child cries at night which eventually deprives my sleep. This is how I spend my night. 

Besides sleepless night, my wife is still not recovered from the post-delivery sickness. Her duty of house chore is handed over to me. So, I wake up early in the morning to get these things done.

It’s only 4: 30 am when my mobile phone beeps its alarm. In this wee hour of the morning, I wash my face and tidy the rooms. Then, I prepare breakfast to be fed myself and wife. By that time, day light is already broken. I have to get ready to go to office. Before that, I wash all nappies of the child that have been piled up after its usage in the previous night. And I prepare lunch for my wife to readily feed herself in my absence. Getting these things done, I go to office.  

    

In the office, I don’t have peace. My mind keeps worrying. Will not my child fall sick when I m in office? How they would have eaten lunch? If my child is crying….that sort of bullshits… 

Back from the office, I again have to wash nappies that are used in the day. Then, I have to prepare dinner besides pampering my child when he cries. It’s very tiresome. And of course, at such time, a bottle of beer makes me feel better. 

The most awkward thing is, having to spend sleepless night when I am suffering from cough and cold. I really hate coughing incessantly at night which makes my neighbors awake like me.  

LIFE Teach us Many Things

It has been almost a month without even visiting our blog. The schedule has been tight but now when I look back, nothing productive have I done. This is how our life goes. We think we are busy all day but at the end of the day, nothing credible would have been achieved. 

We are growing old every second and we waste every second without doing anything good for self or for others. Many such seconds in a day will sum up to minutes, hours, days and by the time we realize, so many years would have been already wasted. Sometimes I feel I have wasted all those 16 years of education, learning something and now land up doing entirely a different thing. By saying this I don't mean to be disloyal. But when I look at it from a different angle, education is not only about the subject knowledge, I have learnt a lot more than that, so its in fact not a waste. 

I don't know what is wrong with me. I wanted to do something but the moment the time comes for me to go about it, I am not able to do it. I think of many things in life, many dreams and aspirations, but all these remain as a dream. I have been dreaming so high in life but always land up in the middle, the best part of it is, never let me down to the bottom. So I have learnt that, to hit the bulls-eye from a distant, we can’t hit it if we aim for it but we can if we aim little above the bulls-eye.  

We people have been pampered so much by spoon feeding. If we are left alone, we are lost. From kindergarten till the degree level, we are being fed with spoon. So later once we are in job, lucky for those who have seniors and bosses who guide them well, others have to suffer on their own. They have to learn by doing on trial and error basis. And that is what I have been doing. Learn by doing and that in fact is a good thing I observed in those people because they earn the wisdom themselves and such skills will never be gone from them. 

In life we encounter many things. Thinking positive and being positive always get rewarded at the end. No possessiveness, of course in love we tend to become more possessive, that shows your true love but if people don't understand your possessiveness, it turns bad. No egoism, we can have peace life, by being small, we will never become small. There is no problem for pretending not to know when you know but many problems arises if you pretend to know everything when you know nothing. Be who you are and never try to show who you are not. There will be peace in your mind. What hurts you will hurt others too. What you love will be loved by others. Therefore we have to understand each other. If you don't like being hated, never hate others. This is a simple Buddha teaching, help others to help yourself. Pray for other's well-being and you will live well. These are what I have learnt in life.  

Have a happy life ahead.  

Royal Bhutan Police Day

The Royal Bhutan Police was established with personnel reassigned from the army on September 1, 1965, a day thereafter marked as Police Day throughout Bhutan. Starting with only a few hundred personnel in 1965, by the late 1970s the force had more than 1,000 constables and officers.

Royal Bhutan Police have been very helpful in the society in maintaining peace and order. They have been working day and night for the benefit of country. Both man and woman join police force in order to serve Tsa Wa Sum with full dedication and loyalty. 

1st September every year is celebrated as Police Day in Bhutan in order to look back and appreciate the police jobs in Bhutan and also to re-dedicate themselves to serve the nation. We all know how important is the job of police in maintaining the law and order in the country. When many others are in a peaceful sleep, they take their turns to patrol in and around city and community to make sure that people are safe. 

Therefore on this day, we all would like to join our hands and cooperate with Royal Bhutan Police and make sure that their goal and objective of making a peace society to come true. It is one of the keys to achieve GNH.

Peeping through the Window

After having heavy diner, I was not feeling very comfortable and kept walking inside the room. Always thought of skipping the diner but the moment I see or smell the food I can’t resist myself from having it. Anyways that is not what I am going to share here. 

I was bit tired and then felt like lying down. I leaned against the wall on the bed and put on the TV. I could not find anything interesting and was switching the channels up and down. I heard people talking outside and it tempted me to peep out through the window. It was not my first time doing this, I usually peep through the window watching the flow of traffic and people on the road below. I see many different scenes and yesterday was the different one and interesting too. I heard people talking outside and I got up to see what they are up to. I saw many people this time along the road side. And there was a man acting so weird in the middle of the road.  He was drunk and did not know what he was doing. He confronted the every passerby and one of the passersby charged him back but the people nearby compromised. That man was stopping every car and all cars were lined up in queue. Honking everywhere; from right and left. He was charging every vehicle, banging and shouting but the good thing I observed was none of them confronted him, may be many understood that he was under the influence of alcohol or any other substances. Nobody there could stop him.

Then out of nowhere a man in white tracksuits came and dragged him to the side of the road. The drunkard tried to kick him but he could not as he barely could stand. Then man in suit was a police officer, he was with a handset and made a call to his companions. He slapped the drunkard twice for having misbehaved and confronting him. Many other people present there were like "yes! that is what he wanted". Then two personnel came and the man was handcuffed and pushed into the car. All present there were talking about it and once again there was a peace flow of traffic and people. After that I did not hear anything regarding that person.

Watching through the window come across many different scenes and sometimes, it is a good way to understand well the society we live in. After that I slept thinking "why do people act so weird after intoxication".   

City Hawkers

It was late at night when I along with some of my friends had a get together diner on 8th of August and we were boozily walking along the street in Thimphu. By then it was 12 midnight and I could see so many people along the road. I wondered "at this hour!!” People were really busy like in the vegetable market. As I walked near the crowd, a lady called "thukpa thukpa sir" I looked and was astonished to see a line of hawkers with big hot-case in front of each one of them. Most of them are women and at one point of time I was thinking 'why at this hour in the middle of the street where so many delinquent youths move, it is not very a safe place'. I nudged one of my friends and told him; let’s see what they have got. I went near one elderly woman and asked her "what have u got". Without even us asking for it, she poured in a plastic cup and offered me saying "beef thukpa, how many more?" I took it and all my three friends were interested too. We took two each and paid which cost Nu 20 per cup. 

Then little up in the line, I saw a girl aged 13 or 14. I went near her and asked "what have u got", she happily said, "Veg thukpa, momo and Doma". I told her, "Do u stay nearby?" She referred to a place which is about 3-4 kilometers away from town. "Then how do u manage to stay late at night?" "We come in groups and we go in groups and sometimes my uncle comes to pick me up" she said. I was curious if that place could be safe for the hawkers like her, she said so far there was a not a single problem but she fear all the time that the problem could arise any time. My friend called me and I just left after having paid for the delicious Momo she prepared. Especially during a chilling night, they serve a very warm and delicious thukpa (porridge) and people especially the party goers are highly benefited. It is a very good business but at the same time I find it not very safe especially for the girl hawkers.

Then after that we drove to Luntenzampa parking areas as one of my friends told us that its a very good place to hang out at night. We reached there and I was again surprised to see so many cars parked, so many people, singing, dancing and having good times there. Even there, I could see so many hawkers, some even setting up a stall displaying so many edibles inside a car. After spending sometime there, we drove to Buddha point and I found the same there along the road sides. Then I realized people do very good businesses, they help those who go for walk/drive serving very warm tea and porridge and in return they are getting paid.

City hawkers play a very vital role in creating a very comforting scene for those who hang out late night and at the same time they are able to make a living out of it. Almost all the hawkers are women and this is something we have to respect and appreciate their effort despite the late night risks. 

Driving Test in Bhutan

In life every one wishes to own a car and go for a drive. For those who are fortunate enough, they get a chance to drive at the young age. But for many others, its a dream until they are able to own a car or if their close friends have it. If you own a car, it is very convenient. But it does not mean one must own a car to lead a happy life. A car is good if we drive safe, but if we are careless, it is also a source of misery. 

The Road Safety and Transport Authority (RSTA) and Traffic Police play a vital role in maintaining the safe traffic flow throughout the highways in Bhutan. We have so many traffic rules which are strictly being followed by both the drivers and the authorities. These traffic rules and regulations maintain smooth traffic flow even during the busy hours. One very important rule is to have a proper Driving License where ever and whenever we drive a car. Driving license indicates that we are capable and are authorized to drive. To get a driving license, the issuing authority, RSTA follows very strict rules. We have to have the Learner license first which at least is six months old. We have to be 18 years of age and medically fit to drive. They make sure that we have attended the driving introductory courses provided by RSTA or other driving institutes in the country. These are the requirements to apply for the normal driving license. If they find us fit for the license then they register us to take a driving test which is another bottle neck we have to go through. 

                                                                                                                                                             (Ref - RSTA website)

First the written test (MCQ) of 20 questions out of which we have to get minimum of 12 questions correct. If we get through the written test, then we are allowed to go for a practical test which every aspiring candidates fear. The practical driving test contains a small box at the open space. A box approximately of 6.5 by 6.2 meters in length and breadth has been drawn on the ground, with one entry point. We have to drive a car inside that box, first head-on and have to come out head-on. Then we have to repeat the same in reverse direction. This whole practical test has to be finished in just 3 minutes. We should not touch the line with any of the four tires, we should not honk, we should not show any light indicators, wipers, etc. and we should not let the engine turn off at any point in the box. If we do any of these and if we can’t finish in the stipulated time, we are considered fail and the license will not be issued. There is no consideration. If we are able to make through this box test, then they ask us to go for highway test where we have to drive our-self along the highway which is being monitored by one of the Road Safety and Transport Authority (RSTA) officials. If the highway official finds us okay on highway, only then they remark "You are passed".  That is a great relief!

I did not get chance to learn driving at the young age. I learned only at the age of 24 and did test recently with the help of a friend who bought a car recently. I went through all the hurdles before they declared me pass. It was a great feeling of pride and joy. Therefore, I would like to request all my other friends to give a test and get a license. We feel proud!

Drive safe and follow all traffic rules perfectly while driving. The rules are for our own safety and for the safety of others. 

Thank you!

“Ode to my Love"

Slim and tall, a figure everyone loves.

Hair silky, in the air they dance.

Eyes like a diamond they sparkle

Like a dew drop are her winsome lips,

When kissed, feel the effect of bottoms up opium.

Her voice, drives me away to dreamland.

Touch of her hand, heals every wound.

The breath of her, perfumes the air.

Dresses! Suits whatever she puts on.

Walks in a way, that drives my eyes,

The sound of her sandal, taps to the beat of my heart.

Her smile, brightens my gloomy life.

Lends me help, in every field I suffer.

Care for me, as a mother of a beloved son.

Love me as no one in the world can.

Great in every sense, she is my love.

Like an angel she dances.

Sings the voice of a nightingale.

Like a trap she entraps many.

Helpless are those lost in her.

Amongst thousands I found one,

The one sealed in my heart.

Out of many things I love,

I love her the most, she is my love forever.